Quality Open Access Research

Physiological Reports Issue 1.4 Now Published

The latest issue of Physiological Reports has now closed. This is the fourth issue of this new open access journal and submissions continue to be strong. We have now accepted 100 articles in the journal. Authors are encouraged to continue to submit their papers across all areas of physiology to this journal using the online submission site.

Summary: Following cholestasis, failure of the intestinal barrier with decreased intestinal resistance, increased bacterial translocation, and increased episodes of sepsis has been well described; however, the exact mechanisms remain poorly understood. Anecdotal clinical evidence as well as our own animal data suggests a genetic predisposition to exaggerated cholestatic injury. In this study, a microarray analysis in two strains of inbred mice demonstrated changes in intestinal gene expression not only due to cholestasis but also due to the particular murine strain, implicating novel mechanisms involving the growth hormone pathway, the acute phase response, and the innate immune response.

Summary: The aim of this study was to examine using near-infrared microscopy whether sympathetic cholinergic vasodilatation mediates the increases in blood flows of both noncontracting and contracting vastus lateralis (VL) muscles during voluntary one-legged exercise. Atropine (10 µg/kg iv) blunted the increases in concentration of oxygenated-hemoglobin in the bilateral VL at the start of one-legged cycling and during mental imagery of the exercise. Thus, it is likely that central command evokes cholinergic vasodilatation equally in bilateral VL muscles during voluntary one-legged cycling and motor imagery.